FOXBOROUGH, MA – Sharon artist Shana Sood brings her unique brand of visual storytelling to the Artist’s Studio and Gallery at Patriot Place in Foxborough, Mass. from Dec. 13 to Dec. 15, 2019.
Artists are curated for gallery inclusion by members of the Foxborough Art Association.
With a fusion of styles depicting her first 25 years in India and her last 15 years as a wife, mother and resident of the United States, artist Shana Sood says, “I want my art to be a window into the soul of my life both here and in India, as well as the lives of rural Indian women and of the natural beauty all around us. My art tells the story of my journey, and the story of people and places and their nuances, and what moves me in the moment. One day I may take a cue from my history and paint an ethnic Indian woman’s portrait reflecting my culture; on another day I might paint a beautiful New England landscape. At the core, art is a window into the soul.”
Sood will be showcasing dozens of her oil paintings at The Artist’s Studio adjacent to Gillette Stadium and Showcase Cinemas, and she welcomes visitors during gallery hours: Friday, December 13 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday, December 14 from 1-9 p.m.; and Sunday, December 15 from 12 noon to 6 p.m.
The gallery’s address is 266 Patriot Place, Foxborough, Mass. 02035.
Sood, a resident of Sharon, was born in New Delhi, India and lived there for the first 25 years of her life, before moving to USA in 2005. Her self-taught artistic journey started as a little girl using graphite and paper as first medium of expression, the most accessible medium at the time. She got into painting in her early twenties after gaining confidence to apply color to her creations and afford oils and canvas.
Now as a wife and working mother, the beautiful scenery of New England and her love of her native India called her back to oil painting to tell the stories of her life and be inspired by the world around her.
Ms. Sood below explains her own paintings:
- Hookah
I️ bought home decor items from this woman – who belongs to banjaara tribe (gypsies) from Rajasthan. While I️ was picking stuff from her roadside shack, she was calmly smoking her hookah under the glow of the halogen street lamp. The shadows cast by the street light made me pause my shopping and click her dramatic photo so I️ could later paint her.
2. This is one of the scenes that captivated me in New England. Vast meadows with barns. It takes me back to my hometown in Himalayas – where we used to spend most of our summer vacations.
3. Our town Sharon has some of the best seascapes because of the vast open spaces.
4. Street hawker
I noticed him during one of my India trips when I️ was buying colors for my Diwali rangoli (design made of dry colors outside the doorway to usher in the goddess of wealth). His eyes are what got my attention.
5. Three women
This painting is my signature style – bold color palette . I️ want to depict various facets of Indian women – this being one of them… these three are dressed up in traditional attire but could have been ultra modern in what they do for a living, how they are raising their kids, how they chose their partners etc. Indian women have so many layers of culture, heritage and their own choices built into their personalities. This picture is almost calling out to the onlookers and saying ‘keep trying to figure us out’ 🙂
6. Girl with the pail
I️ wanted to paint this picture (clicked by a friend Gitika Saxena, who is an avid traveler) to depict the hardships little kids have to go through just to bring drinking wanted to their families. Kids / adults in rural India have to walk miles some times to get to sources of drinking water.
7. Lahauli buddhist (Himachali) woman
I️ met this woman on my trip to India in March 2019. She was a cook at the monastery in Himachal Pradesh (my home state from north India, nestled in Himalayas). She had a very cheerful personality and happily obliged to my requests of clicking her photos while she prepped her clay oven to start cooking.
8. Himachali bride
Northern Indian brides usually wear bright red on their wedding day. It’s the color of celebration. This photo is however of the second day when the new bride is in much lighter jewelry and is revving in all the attention from her in laws – where she would have arrived the morning of.
9. Rajasthani woman
